W  2  71 195* 


si*,z. 

Or  It 

No.  2. 


v 


# 


I  ISSUED  BY  THE  OREGON  STATE  BIOLOGIST| 

Leaflets  Listing  and  Describing 

Birds  of  Oregon 

Leaflet  No.  2  February,  1908 


INTRODUCTORY  NOTE 

For  this  our  second  bulletin  we  are  again  fortunate  in  having  a  contribution 
from  Mr.  Finley,  which  is  made  doubly  interesting-  by  Mr.  Bohlman’s  photographs 
from  life.  It  is  hoped  that  other  bulletins  may  be  available  later  if  the  appropria¬ 
tion  is  sufficient.  The  birds  here  treated,  with  the  exception  of  the  California 
Purple  h inch,  are  found  throughout  this  State  in  winter  as  well  as  in  summer. 
Agriculturists  and  horticulturists  should  endeavor  to  find  out  to  what  extent 
birds  about  their  homes  are  helpful  or  injurious.  In  determining  the  economic 
relations  of  any  bird,  it  must  be  considered  from  all  points  of  view,  and  during  the 
entire  year  or  season  in  which.it  lives  about  the  locality. 

ALBERT  R.  SWEETSER. 

State  Biologist. 


SOME  COMMON  BIRDS  OF  OREGON 

With  notes  as  to  their  economic  relation  to  man 
By  William  l.  Finley 
Illustrated  with  photographs  from  life 
By  Herman  T.  Bohlman 


RED-SHAFTED  FLICKER. 

The  Red-shafted  Flicker  or  Woodpecker  (C olaptes  cafev  collaris )  may 
readily  be  recognized  by  the  brownish  throat  and  sides  of  the  head,  with 
a  black  crescent  on  the  upper  chest  and  the  breast  covered  with  round 
black  spots.  The  male  has  a  patch  of  red  on  each  cheek.  When  flying 
away,  the  flicker  may  be  identified  by  the  snowy-white  patch  on  the  rump 
and  the  red  lining  of  the  wings  and  tail. 

The  flicker  is  rather  an  odd  mixture  of  woodpecker  and  robin.  He 
climbs  straight  up  the  tree  trunk,  clutching  with  his  claws  and  using  his 
stiff,  pointed  tail  feathers  as  a  prop,  or  he  sometimes  sits  like  an  ordinary 
percher.  Instead  of  a  chisel-shaped  bill  like  other  woodpeckers,  his  is 
more  like  a  pickax.  He  has  the  long  elastic  tongue  that  characterizes 
woodpeckers,  and  this  is  covered  with  a  sticky  saliva  and  is  thrust  out 
to  catch  small  insects.  Like  the  robin,  this  bird  often  digs  and  hunts  in 
the  ground  for  ants  and  worms. 

If  the  flicker  was  good  for  nothing  else,  he  would  deserve  careful 
protection  because  he  is  the  persistent  enemy  of  the  ant  family.  He 

I  n 


seems  to  have  been  created  and  equipped  largely  for  this  one  purpose. 
Although  ants  have  some  use,  they  are  often  a  great  pest.  Many  kinds 
of  ants  are  exceedingly  harmful.  Besides  being  wood-borers,  they  infest 
houses  and  destroy  timber;  but  the  worst  of  all,  perhaps,  they  protect  and 


Copyrighted  ISOSby  H.  T.  Bohlman 

RED-SHAFTED  FLICKER  AT  NEST  HOLE 


care  for  many  aphides  or  plant  lice,  which  are  among  the  greatest 
enemies  of  trees,  plants,  and  shrubs.  The  flicker  also  destroys  a  good 
per  cent  of  beetles,  moths,  and  other  insects.  In  some  of  the  flicker 


/ 


0/o/t 

[3] 

stomachs  that  have  been  examined  by  Prof.  F.  E.  L.  Beal,  of  the  Depart¬ 
ment  of  Agriculture,  he  says  three  were  completely  filled  with  ants.  Two 
of  these  each  contained  more  than  3,000  of  these  creatures,  and  one  con¬ 
tained  over  5,000. 

I  have  heard  a  few  horticulturists  complain  of  the  flicker  for 
pecking  apples  and  pears.  Investigation  shows  that  these  complaints 
come  only  from  a  few  sections  and  are  in  no  way  general.  As  a  rule, 
the  damage  is  comparatively  small,  and,  as  a  whole,  the  bird  undoubtedly 
does  a  great  deal  more  good  than  harm. 


WESTERN  ROBIN 


WESTERN  ROBIN. 

The  Western  Robin  ( Merida  migratoria  propinqua )  is  the  commonest 
bird  resident  about  our  gardens,  orchards,  and  meadows,  and  because  he 
is  so  common,  considerable  discussion  has  arisen  concerning  the  amount 
of  fruit  he  eats.  As  far  as  I  can  learn,  the  most  complaint  is  found 
against  the  robin  as  a  cherry-eater.  Cherries  ripen  early  in  Oregon, 
and  as  it  is  about  the  only  fruit  accessible  at  the  time,  the  robin’s  appe- 


tite  is  undoubtedly  sharpened  by  his  long  continued  diet  of  worms.  I 
have  talked  with  many  orchardists  concerning  the  amount  of  harm  that 
is  really  committed  by  robins.  The  earliest  cherries  are  bothered  most, 
while  those  that  ripen  later  are  not  disturbed  to  any  extent,  because  of 
the  other  fruits  and  berries  that  are  ripe  by  this  time.  The  severest 
complaints  seem  to  come  from  places  where  there  are  just  a  few  cherry 
trees  about  a  locality,  and  to  these  all  the  robins  from  the  neighborhood 
seem  to  go  for  a  feast.  In  places  where  cherry  trees  are  abundant,  the 
loss  is  so  scattering  that  it  is  not  noticed  to  a  great  extent.  For  instance, 
in  an  orchard  of  1,700  Lambert  cherry  trees,  a  few  miles  east  of  Portland, 
the  owner  told  me  the  robins  destroyed  very  little,  if  any,  fruit. 

From  the  data  furnished  by  the  Biological  Survey,  the  table  of  the 
robin’s  food  for  the  year  shows  that  cultivated  fruit  is  not  eaten  to  any 
serious  extent  except  during  the  months  of  June  and  July.  The  amount 
is  30  per  cent  during  these  months,  but  during  the  same  time  the  amount 
of  insect  food  is  over  46  per  cent,  which  shows  that  the  benefit  exceeds 
the  damage.  Scientific  research,  carried  on  by  the  Department  of  Agri¬ 
culture  at  Washington,  shows  that  for  their  own  interests,  horticulturists 
should  try  to  protect  their  crops  during  the  short  season  when  the  robin 
may  be  injurious,  and  let  him  live  to  perform  his  good  work  of  destroying 
thousands  of  insects  that  are  harmful  to  tree  and  plant  life. 

Even  if  the  robin  was  not  of  real  economic  value,  he  surely  would  be 
worth  something  from  the  esthetic  standpoint.  What  would  a  June 
morning  mean  without  the  caroling  of  the  robin?  He  is  the  boldest  bird 
about  our  dooryards.  He  puts  himself  directly  under  our  protection  and 
builds  as  near  about  the  house  as  possible.  Who  has  not  watched  him 
hunt  for  worms  on  the  lawn?  As  an  integral  part  of  a  child’s  life,  we 
need  the  robin  about  our  homes,  even  if  he  does  eat  fruit. 

There  is  always  some  vacant  space  about  a  farm  where  one  or  more 
trees  might  be  planted  especially  for  the  birds.  It  is  better  to  let  the 
birds  have  a  few  seedling  cherry  trees,  or  as  birds  are  very  fond  of 
Russian  mulberries,  a  few  of  these  could  be  planted.  These  are  good 
bearers  and  the  birds  prefer  mulberries  to  cherries.  In  this  way  a  few 
trees  planted  about  a  garden  or  orchard  would  protect  more  valuable  fruit. 

WESTERN  BLUEBIRD. 

The  Western  Bluebird  ( Sialia  mexicana  occidentalis)  may  readily  be 
told  by  the  blue  coat  and  the  brick-red  breast,  which  changes  into  white 
on  the  lower  part  of  the  body.  In  the  East  he  is  known  as  the  fore¬ 
runner  of  spring.  But  in  the  West,  where  the  winters  are  not  so  cold,  a 
few  always  stay  the  year  around.  They  are  together  in  flocks  during 
the  day  and  sleep  together  at  night.  The  bluebird  is  one  of  the  birds  that 
has  taken  remarkably  to  civilization.  He  formerly  built  his  nest  in  some 
hole  of  an  old  tree  about  the  woods,  but  now  he  prefers  a  modern  home. 
He  prefers  to  live  in  a  bird  house  that  is  put  in  the  back  yard  or  about 
the  barn,  or  nailed  in  the  crotch  of  a  fruit  tree. 

Although  the  bluebird  often  lives  about  the  city,  I  associate  him  with 
country  life.  I  know  of  no  better  way  to  cultivate  bird  friendship  to  ad¬ 
vantage  than  to  put  up  bird-boxes  in  various  places  about  a  farm.  One 
is  sure  to  have  one  or  more  bluebird  tenants,  and,  with  a  little  care,  they 


become  very  tame.  They  not  only  pay  rent  in  the  quality  of  their  singing, 
but  by  ridding  the  trees  of  many  harmful  worms.  On  several  different 
occasions,  I  have  watched  the  mother  and  father  bluebirds  feed  their 
young.  In  one  day’s  time  they  have  brought  in  hundreds  of  green  worms, 
caterpillars,  grasshoppers,  ants,  and  other  such  insects.  Over  three- 
fourths  of  the  bluebird’s  food  consists  of  various  kinds  of  insects. 

The  bluebird  is  one  of  our  songsters  that  is  not  accused  of  being 
injurious.  He  does  not  partake  of  the  crops  raised  by  man,  although  he 


WESTERN  BLUEBIRD  AT  NEST  HOLE  IN  SIDE  OF  HOUSE 


boards  himself  about  the  farm  and  garden.  He  is  gentle  and  friendly. 
If  undisturbed,  he  will  raise  two  or  three  broods  during  a  season.  But 
like  other  birds,  his  numbers  do  not  seem  to  increase.  He  should  receive 
careful  protection  by  man,  for,  like  other  birds,  he  has  many  enemies 
that  we  know  not  of.  Many  birds  die  of  disease  or  starve  to  death  during 
the  winter,  and  many  are  killed  by  animals. 


[6] 

BLUE  JAY. 

Two  Blue  Jays  are  common  residents  through  the  western  part  of 
Oregon.  The  Steller  Jay  ( Cyanocitta  stelleri )  may  be  recognized  by  its 
long  crest  and  deep  blue  coat;  upper  parts  of  the  body  are  blackish, 
changing  to  rich  blue  on  the  lower  back  and  belly.  The  California  Jay 
( Aphelocoma  californica)  looks  more  like  the  blue  jay  of  the  Eastern 
woods  in  color;  upper  parts  are  blue,  except  the  back,  which  is  dark 
brownish  or  black.  The  bluish  on  the  throat  fades  into  white  on  the  lower 
part  of  the  body.  His  military  coat  gives  him  distinction  from  other 
birds. 

A  bad  reputation  in  the  bird  world  is  as  hard  to  live  down,  as  it  is 
among  men.  A  man’s  character  may  be  injured  by  a  false  report;  so  a 
bird  is  often  condemned  by  actions  that  are  misinterpreted,  or  on  hearsay 
evidence.  The  man  may  find  recompense,  but  the  bird  cannot.  The  jay 
is  universally  known  as  a  robber  and  murderer:  he  robs  other  nests  and 
he  eats  nestlings.  This  report  has  gone  the  rounds  among  men  so  long 
that  many  people  think  a  blue  jay  does  nothing  else  but  hunt  up  mischief. 
It  is  mighty  hard  to  persuade  some  people  that  any  good  can  come  of  a 
blue  jay. 

Before  we  condemn  the  blue  jay,  let  us  consider  the  real  facts  against 
him  and  weigh  the  evidence.  Grant  that  one  blue  jay  steals  eggs,  it  is 
logically  false  to  reason  from  a  particular  to  a  general  conclusion  and 
say  all  jays  steal.  Professor  Beal,  of  the  United  States  Department  of 
Agriculture,  has  made  a  most  careful  study  of  the  food  habits  of  the 
blue  jay.  His  results  show  that  292  stomachs  of  this  bird  were  examined 
after  being  collected  in  every  month  of  the  year  in  twenty-two  different 
States,  the  District  of  Columbia  and  Canada.  The  food  of  the  blue  jay 
is  composed  of  24.3  per  cent  animal  matter  and  75.7  per  cent  vegetable 
matter.  The  animal  food  was  made  up  largely  of  insects.  In  all  these 
stomachs,  only  two  showed  the  remains  of  birds,  one  of  a  young  bird  and 
the  other  of  a  bird  that  had  likely  been  found  dead.  Only  three  stomachs 
contained  the  remains  of  birds’  eggs,  and  one  of  these  was  taken  in 
October  and  was  evidently  an  old  shell  found  in  some  nest.  In  several 
other  stomachs,  the  shells  of  the  eggs  of  domestic  fowls  were  found,  but 
the  evidence  seemed  to  show  that  these  were  old  egg  shells  picked  up 
about  farm  houses. 

It  is  evident,  therefore,  that  the  depredations  of  the  blue  jay  are  not 
as  general  as  supposed.  But  here  in  Oregon  some  complaint  has  been 
made  against  the  blue  jay  for  stealing  fruit,  and  because  of  its  reputa¬ 
tion,  it  is  denied  protection  under  the  Oregon  laws.  The  injury  to  fruit 
by  the  blue  jay  seems  to  be  more  local  in  places  than  it  is  general.  The 
reports  of  its  destruction  have  come  from  places  where  fruit  is  not 
abundant  or  where  an  orchard  is  surrounded  by  woods  and  the  birds  can 
swoop  down,  take  smaller  fruits  and  fly  back  to  the  woods. 

As  to  the  home  life  of  the  two  blue  jays  here  in  Oregon,  I  have  never 
caught  either  one  breaking  up  the  homes  of  smaller  birds,  but  I  know 
of  one  case  where  I  was  positive  a  warbler’s  nest  was  robbed  by  a  pair 
of  Steller  jays.  There  is  no  doubt  that  a  blue  jay  will  at  times  rob 
other  birds,  but  we  need  not  interfere  for  the  other  birds  in  this  case,  for 


they  know  how  to  care  for  themselves.  They  hide  their  nests  carefully, 
and  one  of  the  parents  is  most  always  on  guard  about  the  premises. 

One  reason  that  makes  me  think  that  the  blue  jay  is  often  wrongly 
accused,  is  that  I  knew  of  a  Steller  jay’s  nest  in  a  patch  of  woods.  I  was 
of  the  opinion  that  these  birds  did  little  else  but  hunt  up  mischief,  so  I 
watched  the  place  carefully.  Near  by  I  found  the  nest  of  a  thrush  with 
young  birds  in  it,  and  also  a  robin’s  nest  with  eggs.  The  latter  was  not 


YOUNG  CALIFORNIA  JAY  ABOUT  TO  LEAVE  NEST 


concealed  and  I  am  sure  would  have  been  robbed  if  the  blue  jays  had 
wanted  eggs,  but  neither  of  the  jays  seemed  inclined  to  mischief. 

In  another  case,  where  I  saw  a  pair  of  these  jays  about  my  chicken 
yard,  I  thought  I  would  catch  them  red-handed  stealing  eggs,  as  one  of 
them  was  about  an  open  nest  that  contained  a  chicken’s  egg.  The  bird 
flew  down  in  the  yard  and  picked  up  a  hazel  nut  and  flew  back  to  the  fir, 
where  it  held  the  nut  between  its  toes  and  pounded  it.  He  couldn’t 
crack  it  and  presently  flew  off.  Several  times  afterward  I  saw  the  same 
pair  about  the  chicken  yard  and  near  the  chicken  house,  but  they  were 
merely  foraging  for  nuts  and  other  eatables  found  about  the  yard. 


[8] 

AMERICAN  CROW. 

The  American  Crow  ( Corvus  americanus)  is  one  of  our  best  known 
bird  characters.  Like  the  blue  jay,  his  reputation  is  bad;  it  is  as  black 
as  his  coat.  It  is  very  true  that  if  a  man  once  catches  a  crow  in  the  act 
of  stealing  grain,  eggs,  or  young  birds,  it  makes  an  impression  that  he 
does  not  forget,  and  he  is  soon  persuaded  that  the  habit  is  universal,  and 
that  the  crow  indulges  in  thievery  all  the  time.  Even  though  we  have 
never  seen  an  instance  of  crow  destruction,  whenever  we  see  this  wily, 
black  individual,  we  are  accustomed  to  think  of  him  as  an  enemy. 

To  determine  the  economic  status  of  the  crow,  the  Department  of 
Agriculture  has  examined  nearly  a  thousand  stomachs  of  crows  killed  in 
every  month  of  the  year  and  all  over  the  country.  The  bird  has  been 
charged  with  causing  injury  to  the  corn  crop,  stealing  fruit,  robbing 
nests  of  poultry,  and  eating  young  birds.  On  each  count,  he  was  proven 
guilty.  It  was  also  shown  that  most  of  the  corn  eaten  was  waste  corn 
and  the  part  destroyed  while  growing  was  only  3  per  cent  of  the  total 
food.  The  destruction  of  fruit  and  eggs  was  only  trivial,  while,  on  the 
other  hand,  the  amount  of  harmful  insects  and  mice  eaten  rendered  the 
final  verdict  in  favor  of  the  crow,  for  it  was  proven  beyond  doubt  that 
he  was  of  more  real  economic  value  than  harm. 

Out  of  909  crow  stomachs  that  were  examined,  only  forty-one  con¬ 
tained  eggs,  feathers,  bones,  or  other  remains  which  could  be  identified 
as  those  of  wild  birds,  and  some  of  these  were  very  likely  the  remains 
of  dead  birds  that  were  found.  It  is  doubtful  that  more  than  one  crow  in 
twenty  ever  becomes  addicted  to  this  sort  of  stealing.  Even  if  he  has  the 
tendency  to  steal,  it  is  only  occasionally  that  the  chance  is  offered,  for 
other  birds  are  generally  on  the  watch. 

No  animal  food  is  hunted  and  eaten  more  regularly  by  crows  than 
frogs  and  toads.  Of  the  909  stomachs  examined,  151  of  these  contained 
the  remains  of  frogs  and  toads.  Those  also  showed  that  a  great  percentage 
of  the  crow’s  food  is  insectivorous.  It  is  composed  of  grasshoppers, 
beetles,  cutworms,  ants,  and  various  kinds  of  flies. 

Many  of  the  reports  of  the  crow  doing  damage  come  from  the  East, 
and  especially  in  the  spring  and  winter  when  the  natural  food  is  scarce. 
Here  in  Oregon  the  crows  remain  with  us  the  entire  year,  and  there  is 
seldom  a  time  when  he  cannot  find  abundance  of  natural  food  in  the 
woods  and  fields. 

Crows  are  fond  of  various  kinds  of  fruits  and  berries,  and  where  they 
do  not  get  this  supply  of  food  in  the  native  woods,  they  often  frequent 
orchards,  and  in  some  cases  in  fruit-growing  sections  of  our  State  have 
been  known  to  do  damage.  But  where  they  see  cultivated  fruit,  they  are 
generally  very  sly  in  stealing.  If  one  or  two  of  the  birds  of  the  flock  are 
shot,  the  rest  are  very  wary  about  visiting  the  trees  again. 

The  crow  undoubtedly  destroys  eggs  and  young  of  other  birds,  but  the 
real  amount  of  damage  he  does  is  often  exaggerated.  He  will  eat  chicken 
and  turkey  eggs  where  the  nests  are  found  out  away  from  the  farm 
houses,  but  where  he  has  been  shot  at  a  few  times,  he  seldom  comes  very 
near  about  the  premises. 

Mice  form  one  of  the  most  important  articles  of  the  crow’s  food.  The 
crow’s  habit  of  searching  the  ground  for  food  enables  him  to  find  many 


mice  as  he  walks  along  and  pokes  his  nose  into  bunches  of  leaves,  under 
grasses  and  weeds,  in  the  meadows  and  pastures.  Crows  are  most  active 
in  their  search  during  the  spring  and  summer  when  the  hay  is  cut  and 
when  they  are  likely  to  find  nests  of  mice  that  contain  young.  The  crow 
stomachs  that  have  been  taken  in  July  and  examined  have  contained 
more  mice  than  in  any  other  month.  This  is  a  fact  that  the  agricul¬ 
turist  should  credit  to  the  crow’s  account.  Even  tame  crows  are  very 


AMERICAN  CROW  AT  NEST 

partial  to  mice,  for  even  when  they  refuse  other  food,  they  seldom 
refuse  these.  In  a  case  where  several  young  crows  were  in  a  cage  to¬ 
gether,  the  bird  that  gets  the  mouse  will  swallow  it  whole  to  keep  the 
others  from  getting  it,  but  later  it  is  generally  disgorged  and  torn  to 
pieces. 

CALIFORNIA  PURPLE  FINCH. 

The  California  Purple  Finch  ( Carpodacus  purpureus  calif ornicus)  or 
Red-headed  Linnet,  is  a  bird  that  is  complained  of  at  times  because  it 
destroys  the  buds  when  the  trees  are  in  blossom.  This  species  is  not 
abundant  enough  later  in  the  summer  to  cause  much  damage  to  fruit.  It 
is  only  in  the  early  spring  when  they  come  in  flocks  that  complaint  is 
made.  The  House  Finch  ( Carpodacus  mexicanus  frontalis)  is  a  bird 
that  is  almost  identical  and  is  so  common  through  California.  This  is 


[10] 

the  species  that  is  found  in  some  of  the  valleys  through  Southern  Oregon, 
where  the  climate  is  so  like  that  of  California.  The  male  purple  and 
house  finch  may  be  recognized  by  the  red  color  on  the  head  and  throat, 
fading  to  a  more  pinkish  tint  on  the  back  and  to  a  whitish  on  the  breast. 
The  female  of  both  is  plain  colored,  grayish-brown  on  the  back,  while 
the  under  parts  are  streaked  with  brown  and  white.  All  have  the  large 
finch  bill. 

As  to  the  mischief  some  orchardists  think  the  purple  finch  does  to 
fruit  blossoms,  it  is  often  exaggerated.  The  birds  do  eat  the  buds  and 
blossoms,  but  experience  has  shown  that  they  really  do  very  little  damage 
to  the  fruit  crop.  At  Corvallis  one  of  the  faculty  of  the  Agricultural 
College  noticed  that  a  flock  of  purple  finches  attacked  one  particulai 
tree  on  his  grounds.  The  birds  were  about  the  trees  for  a  week  and 


HOUSE  FINCH  OR  RED-HEADED  LINNET 


were  undisturbed.  The  ground  under  the  tree  was  covered  with  blossoms, 
but  the  crop  of  cherries  was  not  by  any  means  destroyed.  This  is  an 
unusual  case,  for  in  an  orchard  the  purple  finches  seldom,  if  ever,  limit 
their  attacks  to  one  tree.  So  the  amount  of  harm  generally  done  is 
scarcely  enough  to  be  obvious.  The  showers  of  blossoms  that  fall  to  the 
ground  are  not  conclusive  proof  against  the  bird.  In  the  end,  the  budding 
does  little,  if  any,  damage,  for  the  buds  are  usually  superabundant,  and 
whether  they  are  thinned  out  by  birds  or  man  it  is  frequently  beneficial, 
relieving  the  trees  from  excessive  bearing  and  improving  the  size  and 
quality  of  the  fruit. 

The  linnet  is  a  bird  of  strong,  conical  beak  that  is  readily  recognized 
as  a  seed-eater.  During  the  fruit  season,  it  is  not  backward  in  taking  its 
share,  and  a  casual  observer  would  think  that  fruit  was  its  only  article 
of  diet.  The  examination  of  stomach  contents  by  Prof.  F.  E.  L.  Beal 
shows  conclusively  that  over  86  per  cent  of  the  food  of  the  house  finch 
for  the  year  is  weed  seed.  In  his  investigations,  he  examined  the  stomachs 
of  1,206  linnets  through  the  fruit-growing  sections  of  California.  Of  the 
total  number  of  stomachs  examined  1,133,  or  94  per  cent  of  all,  held  weed 
seeds,  while  807,  or  nearly  67  per  cent,  contained  no  other  food.  There 


were  only  63  stomachs  that  did  not  contain  weed  seeds,  while  there  were 
909  that  contained  no  fruit.  When  we  consider  that  each  one  of  these 
birds  destroys  several  hundred  seeds  daily,  the  bird  renders  valuable 
service  to  agriculture,  for  the  amount  of  weeds  so  destroyed  is  enormous. 

KINGFISHER. 

Nature  has  specially  adapted  the  Kingfisher  ( Ceryle  alcyon)  for  his 
life  work.  He  seems  top-heavy  in  appearance.  Everything  is  forfeited 
to  furnish  him  with  a  big  head,  a  spear-pointed  bill,  and  a  pair  of  strong 
wings  to  give  this  arrow-shaped  bird  a  good  start  when  he  dives  for  fish. 

r  have  often  watched  the  kingfisher  along  the  river  near  my  home. 
He  sometimes  occupies  an  old  willow  along  the  bank,  and  he  sits  there 
for  half  an  hour  at  a  time,  occasionally  turning  his  head  and  watching 
^he  water  carefully.  I  sat  on  the  bank  one  day  as  he  came  rattling  down 
the  river  and  swerving  up,  caught  himself  in  mid-air  and  came  to  a  stop 
fifteen  feet  above  the  water.  What  an  eye  he  must  have,  to  see  a  fish 
under  the  surface  when  going  at  such  a  pace.  He  fluttered  for  a  moment 
as  a  sparrow  hawk  does  above  his  prey,  and  dropped  arrow-like,  com¬ 
pletely  disappearing  beneath  the  surface.  The  next  instant  he  was  in 


FAMILY  OF  YOUNG  KINGFISHERS 


the  air  again  with  a  crawfish.  His  clothes  were  water-tight,  for  the 
water  ran  off  his  satiny  plumage  as  if  his  coat  were  thoroughly  oiled. 

Some  people  advocate  shooting  the  kingfisher  at  every  opportunity, 
claiming  that  he  destroys  too  many  trout.  But  along  many  of  our 
streams  he  lives  on  the  fish  that  are  of  little  or  no  value  to  man.  He 
catches  comparatively  few  trout  and  never  does  he  live  on  these  alone. 
In  Oregon  his  favorite  food  is  crawfish,  and  he  often  catches  different 
kinds  of  insects.  Along  some  streams  he  lives  mostly  on  frogs,  lizards, 
and  beetles.  In  the  Southern  States,  where  the  streams  are  few  and  run 
dry  in  summer,  the  bird  takes  to  a  fare  of  grasshoppers  and  mice. 

The  kingfisher  is  not  a  social  bird,  and  from  an  economic  standpoint 
he  may  not  compare  well  with  some  of  our  other  birds,  but  he  was  here 
before  man  came,  and  should  he  not  have  the  right  to  live  a  secluded 
life  along  our  water  ways?  I  wouldn’t  want  a  field  without  a  meadow¬ 
lark,  even  if  it  did  raise  a  good  crop  of  hay.  It  would  be  a  desolate  patch 


of  woods  with  no  chickadee.  It  would  be  a  barren  orchard  without  a 
robin  or  chippy,  even  if  it  did  bear  apples.  The  river  would  be  robbed  of  a 
part  of  its  interest  if  the  kingfisher  were  not  there.  To  my  mind,  the 
river  can  never  be  quite  the  same  if  the  kingfisher  does  not  nest  in  the 
bank 

WESTERN  MEADOWLARK. 

Those  who  live  anywhere  in  the  country  districts  about  our  State  need 
no  introduction  to  the  Meadowlark  ( Sturnella  magna  neg tecta.)  It  is  a 
bird  of  the  field.  It  is  a  songster  of  the  highest  type.  From  an  esthetic 
standpoint,  no  farm  is  complete  without  this  bird.  Economically  it  is  of 

the  greatest  importance  in  any  agricultural*  community.  In  Oregon  the 
meadowlark  stays  in  sunshine,  rain,  and  snow,  even  in  the  dead  of 


YOUNG  MEADOWLARKS  IN  GRASS  NEST 


[13] 

winter.  He  is  an  early  builder,  for  he  often  rears  a  first  brood  in  March 
or  April  before  other  birds  have  returned. 

The  meadowlark  builds  its  nest  on  the  ground  in  the  middle  of  or  in 
under  a  tuft  of  grass.  The  nests  that  I  have  found  have  been  made  in 
little  hollows  which  the  bird  has  worked  out  so  that  the  home  is  com¬ 
pletely  arched  over  and  covered  by  grass  stems,  making  a  sort  of  a  cave 
from  which  the  bird  has  a  little  beaten  path  to  enter  its  nest.  The 
meadowlark  is  a  deceptive  bird,  for  she  seldom,  if  ever,  lights  near  her 
nest.  When  feeding  young,  the  parent  bird  will  light  from  fifty  to  a 
hundred  feet  from  the  nest,  and  after  a  careful  survey  to  see  that  she  is 
not  watched,  will  dodge  low  and  creep  through  the  grasses  till  she 
reaches  her  young.  When  leaving  the  nest,  she  takes  the  same  caution 
by  sneaking  off  in  another  direction  for  some  distance  before  taking  wing. 

The  meadowlark  is  easily  recognized  by  its  size,  which  is  about  the 
same  as  the  robin.  On  the  ground,  he  walks  like  a  crow  instead  of 
hopping  like  a  robin.  The  distinguishing  marks  in  the  male  are  the 
brilliant  yellow  of  the  breast  and  the  crescent  of  black  hung  about  the 
neck.  The  female  has  duller  plumage  throughout. 

A  study  of  the  food  of  the  meadowlark  shows  that  it  is  a  bird  of  great 
economic  value.  Its  food  is  largely  composed  of  weed  seeds.  When  the 
grain  is  ripening  and  being  harvested,  the  meadowlark  lives  almost  en¬ 
tirely  on  grasshoppers,  crickets,  beetles,  and  other  insects.  The  bird 
also  destroys  large  numbers  of  cutworms,  army  worms,  and  chinch  bugs. 
It  is  often  thought  that  the  bird  eats  considerable  wheat  and  other  grains, 
but  a  scientific  study  of  its  food  shows  that  grain  is  but  a  small  part  of 
its  diet.  The  grain  eaten  is  largely  gleaned  from  the  stubble  fields  after 
the  harvest  is  over  when  the  insect  food  is  scarce. 

In  the  investigation  of  the  food  of  the  meadowlark,  carried  on  by  the 
Department  of  Agriculture,  238  stomachs  were  examined.  These  were 
collected  in  twenty-four  different  States,  representing  every  month  in  the 
year.  A  summary  of  stomach  contents  for  the  whole  year  is,  insect  food 
71.7  per  cent,  vegetable  food  26.5  per  cent,  mineral  matter  1.8  per  cent. 

In  other  words,  nearly  three-fourths  of  the  meadowlark’s  food  for  the 
year,  including  the  winter  months,  consists  of  insects.  During  the  sum¬ 
mer  months,  when  grasshoppers,  caterpillars,  and  other  insects  are 
plentiful,  the  meadowlark  lives  on  these  almost  entirely.  Even  in  March, 
when  insects  are  not  easily  found,  they  make  up  73  per  cent  of  this  bird’s 
food.  So  it  is  a  wise  provision  in  our  Oregon  laws  that  makes  it  a  crime 
to  kill  this  bird  or  destroy  its  nest. 

SPARROW  HAWK. 

The  Sparrow  Hawk  ( Falco  sparverius  deserticola )  is  a  bird  whose 
name  is  against  him.  He  should  have  been  named  the  grasshopper  hawk, 
which  would  have  been  more  appropriate  in  every  way,  for  he  seldom 
touches  a  sparrow,  while  he  lives  to  a  large  extent  on  grasshoppers.  He 
is  the  smallest  in  our  family  of  hawks,  and  is  also  the  most  beautifully 

marked,  as  well  as  a  most  beneficial  bird.  He  may  be  recognized  by  the 
general  color  of  bright  red-brown  on  the  back  and  the  lighter  brownish 
breast  with  black  spots.  The  top  of  the  head  is  slate-colored,  with  two 
black  stripes  on  the  cheeks.  This  hawk  may  often  be  recognized  as  it 
perches  on  the  top  of  some  pole,  or  as  it  flies  out  over  the  field  and  on 
fluttering  wing  poises  in  mid-air,  looking  for  its  food.  The  nest  of  this- 
bird  is  built  in  a  hole  in  a  tree,  the  same  as  the  woodpecker. 


SPARROW  HAWK 

It  also  contained  twenty-nine  insects.  He  proved  that  the  bird  is  almoot 
exclusively  insectivorous,  except  when  insect  food  is  difficult  to  obtain. 
In  many  localities  in  the  West  where  grasshoppers  and  crickets  are 
abundant,  these  hawks  will  congregate,  and  rarely  do  they  touch  other 
kinds  of  food  as  long  as  the  grasshopper  crop  lasts. 


Dr.  A.  K.  Fisher  of  the  Biological  Survey  has  made  a  careful  study 
of  the  food  habits  of  this  hawk.  Stomachs  of  320  sparrow  hawks  were 
examined,  and  only  one  of  them  contained  the  remains  of  a  game  bird. 


Among  most  people  in  the  country,  there  is  a  deep-seated  feeling 
against  all  hawks.  They  have  seen  a  hawk  swoop  down  and  carry  off  a 
chicken,  and  the  conclusion  is  that  all  hawks  steal  chickens  and  do 
notning  except  fly  about  and  wait  for  the  chance.  The  farmer,  who 
has  seen  his  chickens  go  sailing  off  in  the  clutches  of  a  hawk,  it  is  mighty 
hard  to  persuade  that  a  hawk  is  good  for  anything  except  a  profes¬ 
sional  chicken  thief.  And  under  the  circumstances,  he  can’t  be  blamed, 
for  hawks  are  not  easy  to  get  acquainted  with  and  it  takes  an  expert 
to  tell  the  different  kinds.  Notwithstanding  these  facts,  it  is  well  to 
understand  something  of  the  real  economic  value  of  hawks,  for  they  are 
not  all  given  to  stealing  chickens. 

Years  ago,  when  the  farmers  of  Pennsylvania  saw  hawks  catching 
their  chickens,  they  concluded  that  all  hawks  and  owls  were  dangerous 
to  their  poultry  yards.  As  a  result,  a  law  was  passed  offering  bounties 
for  the  bodies  of  these  two  species  of  birds.  Before  long,  the  Department 
of  Agriculture  at  Washington  began  to  receive  letters  from  farmers  of 
Pennsylvania  complaining  that  field  mice  were  destroying  their  crops  to 
an  unusual  extent.  A  study  of  the  problem  soon  revealed  the  fact  that 
the  destruction  of  the  birds  of  prey  had  destroyed  the  natural  check  upon 
these  harmful  rodents.  In  interfering  with  Nature’s  balance  to  this 
extent,  the  farmers  lost  several  million  dollars’  worth  of  grain.  The 
hawks  and  owls  are  Nature’s  check  against  the  great  army  of  harmful 
rodents  that  inhabit  our  fields  and  gardens.  The  hawks  hunt  by  day  and 
keep  the  small  diurnal  animals  in  check,  and  the  owls  are  especially 
equipped  to  supplement  the  work  of  the  hawks.  Their  eyesight  is  keenest 
during  the  early  hours  of  the  night  and  morning  when  moles,  gophers, 
and  mice  are  more  active. 

SCREECH  OWL. 

The  Screech  Owl  ( Megascops  asio  kennicottii ) ,  like  the  sparrow  hawk, 
is  largely  an  insect-eating  bird.  It  is  common  all  through  the  western 
part  of  our  State,  where  it  makes  its  home  in  some  hollow  tree  in  a 
patch  of  woods  nearest  a  farm  house.  In  the  day  time  it  is  sometimes 
seen  snuggled  up  on  the  limb  of  a  thick  tree,  close  against  the  trunk, 
where  its  mottled  color  matches  well  with  its  surroundings.  It  is  some¬ 
times  called  the  Mottled  Owl,  or  the  Little  Horned  Owl,  because  of  its 
small  size  and  its  ear-tufts,  which  it  generally  holds  erect. 

Superstitious  people  think  the  owl  is  a  bird  of  bad  omen,  but  to  one 
who  loves  bird  life,  the  wierd  whistle  of  the  screech  owl  among  the  trees 
or  about  the  garden  on  a  still  summer  or  fall  evening,  has  a  peculiar 
fascination.  We  may  well  marvel  at  his  wonderful  sense  of  sight  and 
hearing,  for  as  he  floats  shadow-silently  over  the  garden,  he  hears  even 
the  foot-step  of  a  mouse  or  sees  the  slightest  movement  of  a  gopher  and 
swoops  to  catch  his  prey  with  steel-trap  claws. 

It  is  comparatively  easy  to  determine  the  exact  economic  status  of 
the  hawks  and  owls  by  an  examination  of  the  pellets  found  about  their 
homes  or  roosting  places.  These  birds  often  swallow  the  smaller  rodents 
entire,  or  tear  them  apart,  swallowing  the  fragments.  As  soon  as  the 
nutritious  portions  of  the  food  are  absorbed,  the  other  portions,  such  as 
hair,  feathers,  and  bones,  are  rolled  into  a  ball  by  the  action  of  the 
muscles  of  the  stomach.  These  are  vomited  up,  and  are  known  as 
pellets,  and  by  examining  these,  scientists  can  tell  exactly  what  kind  of 
food  has  been  eaten. 

Through  many  of  the  Middle  Western  States,  where  the  interests  are 
largely  agricultural,  the  Rocky  Mountain  locust  is  at  times  very  destruc¬ 
tive  to  crops.  In  the  first  annual  report  of  the  United  States  Entomo¬ 
logical  Commission,  there  are  figures  showing  that  in  the  four  States  of 
Kansas,  Nebraska,  Iowa,  and  Missouri  the  loss  to  crops  by  locusts  was 
142,942,800  bushels,  which  with  a  money  value  of  28  cents  per  bushel, 
would  mean  a  loss  of  $40,000,000.  An  examination  of  the  stomach  con- 


[lb]  \  V.. 

tents  of  eight  screech  owls  taken  at  that  time  in  Nebraska  showed  that 
they  had  eaten  just  before  they  were  killed  219  locusts  and  247  other 
insects,  besides  two  mice. 

In  speaking  of  the  value  of  owls,  Mr.  George  C/ Tones  says:  “I  think 
the  smaller  species  of  owls  feed  upon  the  cutworm  to  some  extent.  I 
have  found  cutworms  in  the  stomach  of  the  common  screech  owl.  The 
fact  that  both  the  cutworms  and  the  owls  are  nocturnal  leads  me  to 
believe  that  the  owls,  of  all  the  birds,  are  the  most  efficient  exterminators 
of  this  formidable  pest  and  should  on  this  account  receive  protection.” 

In  one  locality,  almost  every  tree  of  a  five-acre  peach  orchard  was 


SCREECH  OWL  LEAVING  NEST 

girdled  by  mice  and  rabbits  during  the  winter.  It  would  have  paid  the 
owner  of  the  orchard  to  have  had  owls  and  hawks  about  the  locality,  even 
though  a  chicken  might  have  been  stolen  occasionally.  In  many  places 
where  our  young  fruit  trees  are  alive  and  in  good  condition,  we  do  not 
realize  that  it  may  be  due  to  the  hawks  and  owls,  for  we  often  credit 
them  with  more  harm  than  benefit.  Here  in  Oregon,  the  mice,  gophers, 
moles,  and  rabbits  stay  with  us  summer  and  winter,  and  so  do  the  hawks 
and  owls. 


SALEM,  OREGON 

WILLIS  S.  DUNIWAY,  STATE  PRINTER 
1908 


